Sewing-machine attachment.



H. B. WOBHRLE.

SEWING MACHINE ATTACHMENT.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 1a, 1909.

Patlltd Apr. 4, 191 1.

ATTRNE Y w/TNESSES:

Maw/MMM UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRIETTE B. WOEHRLE, 0F NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE SINGER MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION 0F NEW JERSEY.

SEWING-MACHINE ATTACHMENT.

Speclcation of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 4, 1911.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRIETTE B. WOEHRLE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machine Attachments, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to an improvement in that class of sewing machine attachments designed for sewing strips of fabric into a turned tubular trimming with the stitched portion inturned to conceal the stitching; and the invention has for its object to provide a simple and effective attachment of this class which may be readily applied to the machine without special fitting.

The invention consists in the attachment herein shown and described and set forth inv the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a erspeetive view ofthe forward portion of t e sewing machine with a presser-foot embodying the present improvements. Fig. 2 is a 'erspective view taken from above the rear oi) the attachment, and Fig. 3 a similar view from the lower side of the attachment. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section through the tubular arbor of the attachment and the throat-plate of the sewing machine and representing the relation of the feed-do to the foot-plate of the presser-foot, and *ig. 5 a transversesection of the same representing the attachment in front end view. Fig. 6 is a transverse section through the foot-plate and representing the strip-guiding portion of the attachment in front end View. y Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing a portion of the turned tubular trimming produced by vthe attachment.

The portions of the sewing machine reprev sented in Fig. 1 comprise the usual bedplate 1, throat-plate2 and slide-plate 3, with the lower part of the head of the bracketarm 4 in which are journaled the reciprocating needle-bar 5 carrying the needle 6 and the presser-bar 7 having upon its lower end the collar 8 provided with the usual seat- 9 upon which is secured by means of the fastening screw 10 the slotted shank 11 of the presser-foot formed with the fiat foot-plate 12. The foot-plate has a reduced forward extension provided with the laterally projecting supporting arm 13 affording a notch 14 in front of its body portion, while the edge of the foot-plate has a needle-clearance notch 15.

To the arm 13 is rigidl connected by means of the lateral fin or plitte 16 the front end portion of the tubular arbor 17 which h as a bore of uniform size, but whose opposite end Vis vformed with an annular enlargement 18 to afford a rounded extremity over which the stri of material previously stitched into tugul into the end of the arbor toward the front of the machine. The front end of the arbor 17 1s surrounded by a scroll 19 having laterally extending spaced parallel members 20 attached to or merged into the lateral supporting arm 13 of the foot-plate 12.

By reference to the drawings it will be seen that the forward portion of the presserfoot provided with the arm 13 is slightly upturned whereby the scroll is elevated above the bearing` surface of the presser-foot in relation to which it is slightly inclined, and the tubular arbor 17 is curved in the direction of its length so that, while its receiving end is inclined similarly to the surroundlng scroll, its delivery end is substantially parallel with the operative face of the resser-foot, as indicated more particularly in Fig. 4. The tubular arbor is arranged parallel with and close to the adjacent ed e of the foot-'plate r12 so as to afford, in t e present instance in conjunction with the needle-clearance notch 15, a narrow slot which constitutes a needle aperture, the arbor extendin from the supporting arm 13 backwardly )eyond the operative or workengaging face of the foot-plate 12 so as to receive in its central aperture the stitched margin of the strip after it emerges from between the presser-foot and the feed-d'oo by which the Work is propelled for the stitc ing operation. To insure the proper introduc tion beneath the presser-foot of the overlapped marginal portions of the strip confined between the parallel members 20, the scroll is terminated in front of the body portion of the foot, and the marginal portions of the tape are led therefrom through the notch 14 and beneath the operative portion of the foot-plate, the scroll 19 being disposed entirely above the level of the oWer or operative face of the presser-foot to avoid interference with the latters normal action upon the work.

ar form may be drawn yIt is of considerable importance in the practical operation of the attachment. that the operative relation of the tape-guiding parts and the foot-plate be rigldly maintained in closely spaced relation, so that they/ will rise and fall together under the action of the feed-dog, as any relative movement of these parts which would result from mounting them independently would cause the overlapped lrrarginal portions of theV strip to be drawn laterally more or less from beneath the foot-plate and then crowded 1nto the slot intermediate the edge of the same and the arbor 17 so as to produce uneven and otherwise imperfect work. According to the present improvement the parts are so arranged that the fabric is controlled to the fullest extent from the time it enters the attachment until it emerges therefrom as a finished trimming. I

Projecting from the scroll 19 longltudinally of the arbor 17 and inwardly toward the latter are two drag-springs or tension arms 21 22 having their operative ends curved to conform substantially with the exterior of the arbor'and normally resting yieldingly in contact therewith, being thus adapted to press the fabric closely in contact with the arbor adjacent the stitching point at the needle aperture 15 of the footplate 12.

The throat-plate `2 is provided with the usual feed aperture 23 through which passes `the usual serrated feed-dog 24 which is disposed""directly beneath the foot-plate 12 of the'presser-foot with which it cooperates in feeding the overlapped marginal portions of the strip of fabric presented at the side of the arbor 17. V

In the operation of the attachment, as represented in Fig. 4, the presser-foot is rst raised and the strip of fabric is introduced into the substantially annular passage between the frontend of the arbor 17 and the scroll 19. rllhe upper marginal portion of the strip is preferably led across the top of the foot-plate 12 to a sewing point marked by the needle aperture 15, after which it is tucked in through the notch 14 by the use of a stilletto by which it is drawn forward through introduction of such implement in the clearance slot afforded between the side of the arbor 17 and the. adjacent edge of the foot-plate 12. After drawing the strip in the direction of feed, preferably somewhat more than the length of the arbor 17 the advanced end of the fabric is seized `by the hooked end of a threading wire passed through the tubular arbor and is drawn through the latter where its forward end may be grasped by the operator and its delivery through the arbor, while the stitching proceeds, continued in opposition to the direction of feed and of seam formation.

While the product as thus described com- I prises a mere tube which may be flattened in its application to a body fabric in the form of trimming, and is thus adapted for certain f kinds of ornamental uses, it is in practice sometimes provided with a cotton o r wool filling which is led into the rear end of the tube at the turning point where it is fricv tionally drawn-into the tubiilar trimming to afford a soft filling therefor as represented in Fig. 7, where the strip or tape a is shown formed in its body portion into a tube b with overlapped marginal portions c stitched together at the junction with the tubular portion by means of the line of stitching d, the` tube b being turned inside-out at the point e over the expanded end 18 of the arbor 17 atwhich point the filling cord f is drawn into the same, the marginal portions o being drawn into the interior of the finished article where they are entirely concealed, as is also the line of stitching.

As will be readily seen, the object of the drag-springs 21 and 22 is to yieldingly maintain the fabric in Contact with the exterior of the arbor 17 to whose cylindrical surface it is thus caused to closely conform, thereby vinsuring uniformity of the tubular portion b of the trimming cord; but it will be observed that these springs are adapted to yield readily to permit the easy passage of cross seams such as are met at frequent intervals in the bias strips commonly emr ployed in producing this class of trimming.

Having thus set forth the nature of the invention, what I claim herein is 1. A sewing machine attachment for producing stitched and turned tubular trimming comprising a presser-foot constructed with a foot-plate having at its forward end a lateral supporting arm, a tubular arbor disposed parallel with one edge of said' footplate and spaced therefrom, a guiding scroll fixed to said supporting arm and surrounding the forward end of said arbor with which it forms an annular passage to receive and fold a strip of fabric, and drag-springs adapted to press the material upon the eX- terior of said arbor.-

2. A sewing machine attachment for producing stitched and turned tubular trimming comprising fa presser-foot constructed with a foot-plate, a tubular arbor rigidly attached to and spaced from one edge of said foot-plate to form a narrow intermediate slot constituting a needle aperture, and a guiding scrolll surrounding and spaced from the surface of the forward end of said arbor and terminating in front of said needleaperture, said scroll being disposed entirely above the level of the lower or operative face of the foot-plate of said presser-foot.

3. A sewing machine attachment for producing stitched and turned tubular trimnung comprising a presser-foot constructed with a foot-plate having a reduced for- `tuting a needle aperture, and a. guiding in front of the operative or body portion of the foot-plate of said presser-foot, said scroll being disposed entirely above the level of the lower or operative face of the foot-plate. 15

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HENRIETTE B. WOEHRLE. Witnesses:

D. B. BIRNIE, H. A. KORNEMANN, Jr..

wardly extending ortion with a laterally extending arm, a tu ular arbor parallel with and arranged close to the edge of said footplate with its forward end rigidly secured to said lateral arm and its rearward end extending beyond that of said foot-plate and forming with the latter a narrow slot constiscroll carried by said lateral arm and surrounding and s aced from the surface of the forward end o said arbor and terminating 

